The Chase
by Calimera
Summary: Alfred is running for his life... or is he?


**A/N: Disclaimer: Tanz der Vampire and its characters belong to Roman Polanski, Jim Steinman and Michael Kunze.**

**Just a short story I wanted to write for Halloween, I hope you'll enjoy it, until my next (and longer) fanfic!**

**This story was beta-readed by kitsunegari101, many thanks to her!**

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Castle von Krolock was seen by most as an enormous and menacing building, bigger than a mountain and darker than the night. When Alfred first laid eyes on the castle, it seemed to him that it was similar to a colossal monster, ready to engulf innocent souls that had the misfortune to come near to it.

And engulf him, it did; the size and the space of the castle were even more exaggerated by the emptiness and silence.

"Spooky" didn't quite cover it, and "eerie" was an understatement. He had entered to find dim, long, wide hallways, with tall windows covered with long, dusty curtains. The air was cold and still. The building was old and quiet. So old he could feel history was living there with ghosts and monsters, so old the castle seemed locked in another time. So quiet one could hear a mouse running, so quiet it seemed dangerous to disturb it, in fear the shadows would get big enough to eat him whole, or to see the monsters hiding and lurking stepping out to attack him. It seemed that the castle was living under constant shadows. His eyes had been darting back and forth warily, afraid that ghosts or vampires would come out of the darkness to attack him.

It was a labyrinth of empty corridors, so huge it would be so easy to get lost.

Especially when you were running from a vampire.

Alfred's steps were half muffled by the hallways's dusty carpet. His feet slipped out from under him as he turned round the corner, and he got up as quickly as possible. He could feel the will of his muscles going far beyond what exercise could ever demand, as he inhaled deeper and faster. He knew he should have been able to feel the screaming of his lungs, the shocking of his throat and the frantic beatings of his heart, yet, his mind was entirely on his sheer desire to outrun the vampire behind him. Were he to fail, he would pay the price.

Alfred didn't know the Castle as well as the master of the building himself. Sometimes, he had to hide behind a wall to try to figure out where he was and where to go, and to try to catch his breath.

Being chased, Alfred decided, was nothing like the books he read and the paintings he saw. The character always looked heroic and in command of the situation, he always knew where to go and managed to escape the pursuer. Reality turned out to be very different. He wasn't cool under pressure and he didn't even have the time to grab his shoes before the chase started. He was running in a scattered way, hiding wherever he could. Sometimes, he took wrong turns and slipped on the floor, and his face would get caught in a spider's web.

Alfred didn't feel heroic or graceful. He felt like a mouse, trying to escape from a cat.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see something sharp and long coming toward him.

Count von Krolock was running toward him. Alfred knew it was him by his tall silhouette and by the way he made no sound at all. His cape was flying behind him as he ran, and for a moment, Alfred was reminded of a giant bat as it was flying toward his prey. Toward _him_.

"You can't escape me forever, Alfred!" came his loud, thunderous voice.

No, he couldn't. It didn't stop him from trying, though.

His hair was unruly and his clothes were dirty with dust and who knew what else; he could hear the Count's steps clearer than ever, yet Alfred kept going. He knew he was being stubborn – how could he escape the master of the castle forever? – but he didn't have anything else but escape.

He looked closely to where he was going. One wrong move, one wrong turn, and he would pay the price.

Alfred wished he could hide somewhere and lead Krolock into thinking he ran somewhere else but he knew it wouldn't work. He couldn't trick the vampire for he would know where Alfred would be hiding. He always knew where to find him. One couldn't fool a man such as the Count von Krolock.

He found the stairway leading to the ground floor, and made his way toward it. In his haste, his feet slipped on the stairs' red carpet. He rose up as quickly as he could and kept running.

He found another hallway, one he was familiar with. It was one of the first rooms he had seen when he first entered the castle with Professor Abronsius. It was a big, empty room with its walls painted in red and covered with dusty paintings of people that, he guessed, were of the von Krolock family. Alfred always had found this room spooky. It was devoid of windows and long, rusted candelabras were put alongside the paintings, making the people painted look… almost alive. Alfred had always the impression the people in the paintings were watching his every move, thus giving him the impression he was not alone.

Alfred tried not to pay attention to them. The chase, after all, was still on. He had to find the entrance of the castle…

He almost jumped when he saw a shadow, bigger than his, darting to his left and keeping up with him. Alfred turned to his right, in an effort to create more distance between him and the vampire.

His eyes found the entrance of the Castle and he ran faster to reach for it when -

Suddenly, he sensed someone holding him back and his back being pressed against a cold chest. Count von Krolock held him close, brutally interrupting Alfred's running. His arms held Alfred firmly around the waist and a clawed hand was holding his face. Alfred tried to twist in his grasp, but Krolock was holding him tightly.

"I have caught you."

The satisfaction was clear in Krolock's voice. Alfred twisted in his arms to face him. Krolock was looking down at him with a glimmer in his eyes and a smug smirk.

Alfred let out an unhappy sigh. He had lost.

"I guess so…"

"Did you enjoy this little game of yours, my dear Alfred?" Krolock's eyes were glittering with an amused sparkle.

At this, Alfred smiled.

"It was… amusing to have you chasing after me." He confessed.

"Is that so?" Krolock said with a false surprised tone. "What am I going to do with you?"

"You're the chaser, I'm sure you can think of something!" Alfred dared to say.

Krolock looked at him, then let out a rich laugh.

"Well, it seems that now that I have caught my prey, I must simply… _devour _you."

He leaned down and Alfred felt the Count's long hair falling on his face. Then, he felt lips touching his and he surrendered into the kiss.

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**What's going on? Is Alfred a vampire living in the castle? Is he still human? That's up to your imagination ;)**

**Thanks for reading! Feel free to tell me what you thought of it!**


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